On December 3rd, I, a newbie who has been training touch rugby for one month, had my debut at the Christmas Cup at San Giorgio delle Pertiche.
The week before the tournament, I was not sure if it was ok for me to play in a match already considering my performance during the trainings. Every time I got to learn new techniques, my brain understood while my body could not. And then neither of them remembered what to do in the games in the end. I always wanted to talk more on the pitch as I was told, but I had no idea what to say since I barely knew anything.
‘More than ok,’ that was the confirmation from the coach. With that encouragement and help, I made up my mind. When realizing that the atmosphere would not be so serious, the excitement overpassed nervousness. I went through everything I had learned so far during the days to not hold my team back too much.
Here comes the day, a cold rainy Saturday. Realizing that it would not be a usual tournament as what I had seen since most of the players would be men who usually played with different rules, I did not know what to expect. Facing 6 former male rugby players who were 4 times of my size on the pitch, my only objective was to try my best and not to be smashed.
During the match, everyone was so supportive. Ian and all the teammates were always by our side and telling us what to do step by step. Everyone was giving me compliments and encouraging me all the time despite my mistakes. The wing in the other team who dived to score in front of me was so polite to me as well.
After the first game, I had strong sense of accomplishment. With more confidence, excitement and support, I survived the following games in the rain. My mind would not go blank in the match anymore. I was finally clear what and when I need to do on the pitch. I felt I was no longer a newbie after the day, which means that I would not allow myself to make silly mistakes.
Playing against male teams was an exciting experience. I always feel frustrated and discriminated every time I find out there are no female equipment in soccer, rugby and other sports sections in sports store. As we were told in the Women Open Training weeks ago, us women should trust ourselves. I am so proud of all the female players on Saturday. We believed in ourselves, and we showed our power! Man-to-man means not only our defense strategy on Saturday but also us female players’ courage and confidence.
作为女性，我们经常被默认“不懂体育”、“不会打球”。这次比赛，我们用事实证明，我们完全可以和男性球手同场竞技。我们专业，我们相信自己。赛场上，女性球手能够让每个人感受到我们的力量。赛场之外，我们同样自信。
The experience with Scambio has totally changed me on and off the pitch. I decided to continue after my first training session because I felt that touch rugby required all the qualifications I did not have. Thanks to Scambio, I have now! In Scambio, I gained more athletic ability, confidence and friendship. Now I am more motivated to train, to play more matches, to make more friends and to try new stuff. I feel so grateful to be with Scambio, an amazing team which made me more powerful in any aspects. My Italian is broken, but I have learned the most important two words in Scambio: ‘dai’ and ‘vai’.
Vai! Amazing and loving Scambio!